Sessional Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development Written Submissions Received Volume 2 Issues associated with the progressive entry into the Northern Territory of Cane Toads October 2003
Tabled Paper 1123
Tabled Papers for 9th Assembly 2001 - 2005; Tabled Papers; ParliamentNT
2003-10-16
Tabled by Delia Lawrie
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https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2019C00042
https://hdl.handle.net/10070/307061
https://hdl.handle.net/10070/346011
Written Submissions Darwin City Council Volume 2 Cane Toad Inquiry Report 57 SUBMISSION NO. 6 Darwin City Council Mr David Thiele, Operations Engineer and Mr Brendan Dowd, Director Technical Services REPORT TO CHIEF OFFICERS GROUP FROM DIRECTOR TECHNICAL Report No. 02TS0264DT:cs CANE TOADS Synopsis This report provides an overview on how other Councils within Australia deal (or don't deal) with the cane toad problem and recommends that Council liaise with NT National Parks and produce Information sheets regarding Issues associated with cane toads. General There is surprisingly little information available on the practical management of the cane toad problem by Councils. The CSIRO is conducting research into the biological control of cane toads but liaise little to offer in terms of local management, The Queensland Museum appears to be an authority on the subject but mainly deals with distribution and differentiation from local species. Individual Councils in areas where the cane toad has been living for over 60 years such as Cairns City Council do not recognise cane toads as a problem, just a fact of life. More recently, invaded Councils on the east coast, such as Byron Bay, also do not actively seek to manage the issues as their residents appear to be resigned to the inevitability of the migration. The National Parks in NSW seek to control isolated breakouts of the toad rattier than trying to stop the natural front. In Katherine, which was invaded about 12 months ago, they have not received any complaints or queries from residents and only one enquiry from a sweeping contractor who had environmental concerns about washing his machine out. The Problems The most obvious problem is road kill. The toads initially smell, make a mess and attract flies. After a short time they just become hard, flat, black marks on the road not conducive to revealing They will take over short grassed areas especially leading up to waterways but they do not like thick reeds and rushes. They can kill native wildlife if eaten will take over habitat and are a potential threat to pets such as cats and dogs. They will eat pet food left out for animals and the cooler months they will shelter under timbers, sheets of iron etc. Response to the Problem Generally, Councils around the country are doing little about the issues. They generally refer all problems to the local Parks and Wildlife Department. In some areas, such as Lismore, the local Environment Centre run an annual Cane Toad